Jobs & Education4 mins ago
compasses at the poles
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How do compasses behave at the magnetic north/south pole?Because the opposite pole is in all directions I'm thinking they might spin around or oscillate between N/S but would like a definitive answer. Ta in advance.
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No best answer has yet been selected by xandy. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.
For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.Apparently, at the North Pole, the needle will attempt to bend downwards! (I presume it bends up - against the compass-glass, as it were - at the South Pole.)
Anyway, that's what it says on the web-page you'll be taken to if you click http://www.wonderquest.com/compass-at-pole.htm
The compass needle aligns itself with the magnetic lines of flux of the Earth which at the poles are more or less vertical. Therefore the needle attempts to align itself vertically, with the relevent pointer pointing downwards, which is precisely where the Earths pole will be if you are standing over it. It doesn't bend, it attempts to stand vertically - and at the opposite pole it will attempt to stand vertically the opposite way round.